All I Ask of You
by Smiles1998
Summary: Let your mind start a journey to a strange new world- Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before, Let your soul take you where you long to be! Only then can you belong to me... You alone can make my song take flight, Help me make the music of the night... (Modern AU)
1. Prologue: Think of Me

_Sarah… _

Sarah looked up from her laptop again and sighed as her gaze flickered to the flyer again. _How could I let Marley talk me into this?_ Sarah thought

'This' was auditioning for a new show in New York city. A show entitled _Music of the Night_. It was an Andrew Lloyd Webber show, not unlike the ones he had done in London. The show would have a bunch of unknown girls competing for the role of Christine from his famous musical the _Phantom of the Opera_.

Sarah had seen clips of shows like it online and she was stilled pissed that Samantha Barks—from a show Andrew Lloyd Webber had just completed about a month ago entitled _I'd Do_ _Anything_- hadn't gotten past third place; but she did know how the show worked. It was basically a Broadway version of _American Idol_.

It had been two years since Sarah had the dream. Yet it had seemed so real. She would swear she now saw shadows move at least once a day, even when shadows weren't supposed to be there and at the sound of a bird, she would always turn and check to see if an owl was there. But Sarah knew it _was_ a dream, it had to be! None of the friends she had made while she was there came when she called for them. Toby had been there safely in his crib the next morning, and the whole thing had an odd-air to it that could only mean that the whole 'Labyrinth' ordeal was just a dream. It was one Sarah had learned from.

She no longer complained about things being 'unfair,' unless she had a good reason for it; which was less often now. She gave up her childish toys (well, most of them,) and offered them to her now three-year-old brother, Toby. However, there was still those moving shadows or the call of an owl that made her think back to the man in her dreams. The Goblin King. The thought of him made her heart beat fast and her stomach do flips.

"_Just fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave." He pleaded with her, his hands outstretched, offering the beguiling crystal orb. As if to entice her with the promise of a hallow dream._

"_My kingdom is as great… My kingdom is as great…" Sarah struggled to remember that one line. It was always that one line. The young brunette glanced up at the Goblin King, in all his fine, unworldly, unfairly handsome glory, and suddenly, she remembered. "You have no power over me."_

_Mismatched eyes looked on in something akin to heart break as he withdrew the crystal, only to throw it in the air a minute later as her words echoed around the broken room. The Goblin King fell before her, his cloak fluttering to the ground as he shrunk down to nothing._

Sarah began panting as one word echoed through her head, mercilessly. _"Lies… All lies, precious."_ It wasn't her voice that spoke them. Perhaps she was spending too much time working with Jacob and Liam at _PhotoHut!_ all those _'special breaks'_ were starting to go to her head. Maybe she should return her stash, or at least give it to Liam or Jacob. Probably Liam. "Sarah? Sarah!" A male voice called from downstairs.

"Upstairs, River," Sarah called back, and was soon greeted by two pairs of footsteps pounding up the stairs, eventually finding their way to her room. A boy with shoulder length dark blonde hair and blue eyes stepped in first, soon followed by a girl with dark skin, hair, and eyes. Both were around Sarah's age.

"We wanted to see if you were free today? Jacob said that we could browse the music store for songs for our audition." The girl smiled, obviously eager to get down to the music store.

Sarah offered a small smile in return. "Thanks, Marley, but I've already picked out my song."

"Really? What song?"

"Does it matter?" Sarah asked. "They're not going to pick me."

River sighed. "Sarah, we've talked about this-"

"Just try and see it from my point of view! Marley's the star singer in choir and she gets all the biggest roles!"

"So do you!" Marley smiled. "And it's not because you're just pretty, you have talent!"

"So does Wes…" Sarah pouted.

"Yeah, but despite how often he dresses up like that Frank guy from Rocky Horror, he's not a girl and can't audition for this show," River joked.

Marley placed herself at the end of Sarah's bed. "I know you're not exactly anxious for this show, but I'm doing this for your own good. You gave up on your dream of acting way too quickly!"

"Yeah, why'd you even do that?" River asked.

"It seemed childish." Sarah answered quietly.

"It's only childish if you think it is. Sarah, you're really good! You could be the next Patti LuPone! Or Lea Salonga!"

"Or, to a lesser extent, Olivia Newton-John," River joked.

Even though her friends could be completely bat-shit crazy at times, (And complete and utter pot heads at others) Sarah knew that they were trying to do something nice for her. And her parents were, for once, actually going along with her friends crazy plans.

But that was it, the one plan they actually go along with, and it's the one that has to have her sing in front of one of Broadway's biggest producers and possibly on live TV. Sarah _could_ sing, years of singing along to albums and her lullabies to Toby had proven that, but she couldn't sing_ nearly_ as well as Marley. She didn't really see any need for her to go and embarrass herself in front of all those people.

"So, are you coming or not?" Marley asked. Sarah turned to face her best girlfriend and was greeted by Marley's pout. _Ugh, she knows me way to well. _ Sarah thought with a hint of annoyance. She smiled lightly, if not a bit strained. "Ok, let me just find a stopping place in my Mythology Report."

"You're still not done?" River asked.

"I haven't been feeling too motivated this weekend. I mean, yeah, it's our final project for the class and all, but it's not due for two more weeks so…" Sarah trailed off.

Marley laughed in understanding. "We'll meet you downstairs in a few, kay?"

"Kay…" Sarah said quietly.

As her friends headed downstairs, Sarah walked over and skimmed her Mythology report as quickly as she could. A certain sentence caught her eye. _'Fae are known for being powerful in the art of deception and seduction. Often using the powerful Fae song to seduce their chosen partner, it is reported that the Fae's song is more clear and beautiful than any other voice.'_

Sarah sighed as she jabbed the period key with her finger before clicking save. As she shut down the computer, the seventeen-year-old couldn't help but think wistfully _'If only I could sing like the Fae, then maybe I might get past the auditions next week.'_

As Sarah grabbed her jacket and started to walk out of her room, without thinking, she said it aloud. "I wish that I could sing as beautifully as the Fae." With that she exited her room, shutting the lights as she went out the door.

Unknown to the young girl, someone was watching and waiting. Waiting for her to say those exact words. Now that she had, he finally had some ground to work from. A dark chuckle escaped his throat as a crystal appeared in his hand. "Ask, and you shall receive, precious."

If what she asked for was to sing as beautifully as his kind, then who was he to deny her? After all, she did say 'I wish'.

_A week later… _

Sarah was shaking like a frail leaf, caught in the middle of an autumn wind storm. Marley had just auditioned earlier and was sent away from the room, but not before flashing Sarah a confident smile.

"_She made it. I knew she would…"_ Sarah thought, fingering the ends of her hair nervously. She watched her friend walk out of the waiting room and into the arms of all their friends. Jacob slapped her a high five, River hugged her and gave her a little kiss on the cheek for a job well done, Wes congratulated her with a hug (Though Sarah had a suspicion that it was just so the foreigner could get a good whiff of Marley's hair, and Liam (Jacob's boss and oldest member of their group of friends at the age of fifty-eight) nodded dumbly and smiled at Marley.

The dead-beats must've sensed Sarah's growing nerves because Liam turned to Sarah and gave her two thumbs up. Sarah returned the gesture with a nervous smile. _Oh god, can this be over with soon? I think I might hurl, or faint, or both. _ She shifted the sheet music in her hands, nervously.

As if the universe loved playing some sick joke on her, a woman with a head of stringy orange hair chose that moment to walk into the room with a clip-board in hand and announce: "Sarah Williams."

"Right here." Sarah stood nervously. The woman smiled at her encouragingly. "Nervous, sweetie?"

"Just a little," She admitted quietly.

"Don't worry, everything will work out just fine," the woman said reassuringly. "Its right this way, Miss Williams."

As the woman led Sarah down a hallway to a closed door, Sarah couldn't help but feel as though she was on death row. The woman stepped in front of Sarah to open the door. "Sarah Williams, Mr. Andre Lloyd Webber."

Looking at one of the most influential men on Broadway should've made Sarah a little star-struck, but then again, wasn't it like that every time a virtually unknown teenage girl meets _the Andrew Lloyd Webber_? Because, for crying out loud, he was sitting at a small table with what Sarah thought was the second judge at the front of the room, and towards the back was a bearded man who sat at a grand piano. Nervous beyond belief, she offered a small smile as she waved meekly.

"Hello." The woman sitting next to Andrew Lloyd Webber offered. She was pretty: her long strawberry blonde hair pulled into a sleek bun and she had a splashing of freckles across her face. "Miss Sarah Williams, correct?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"How old are you Miss Williams?" Andrew Lloyd Webber asked.

"Seventeen sir."

The man chuckled lightly. "You are the second youngest one we've had auditioning for us all day?"

"Was the youngest a really pretty sixteen year old who sang _Bohemian Rhapsody_?"

Andrew looked surprised. "Uh, yes! Marley St. Cloud? Kind of a blabber mouth that girl, do you know her?"

"Yes…"

"I am so sorry." Andrew and the female judge beside him looked at her in a near pitying way.

Sarah raised her brow in confusion. "Thank you?"

"And what will you be singing for us today, Miss Williams?" The blonde girl asked.

Sarah glanced down at the sheet music before handing it over to the piano player. "I hope you forgive me for the cliché, but this is the only song I had sheet music to and knew well enough to sing. It's called _Think of Me_."

Andrew chuckled. "Forgiven. Please, begin."

_Meanwhile…._

He sat on the windowsill of his tower; occasionally he glanced out at the Labyrinth, but his eyes focused mainly on the crystal that danced in his hands. Honestly, he knew he wasn't the most patient Fae in the Underground, but this was just taking far too long. Finally he heard an unfamiliar voice speak an all-too-familiar name.

"_And what will you be singing for us today, Miss Williams?"_

Smirking, he brought the crystal closer to his face and watched as his beloved apologized for something before the piano began to play a soft melody. "Now precious, sing your lovely song for us," he said longingly. He was greeted by a lovely voice that could have been rival of any Fae or angel in beauty.

"_Think of me, think of me fondly. When we've said goodbye, Remember me once in a while, please promise me, you'll try. When you'll find that once again you long to take your heart back and be free. If you'll ever find a moment, spare a thought for me."_

He couldn't contain the moan of pleasure as he closed his eyes and let the voice he'd given her fill his head. He had heard her sing before, but now her voice had an unrefined quality to it, like an uncut diamond, or unpolished gold. He could sense that the English gentleman (What was his name, Andrew something?) and the female judge thought so too, for they wore expressions of wonderful surprise.

"_We never said our love was evergreen, or as unchanging as the sea. But if you can still remember, stop and think of me. Think of all the things, we've shared and seen. Don't think about the way things might have been."_

He opened his eyes and gazed into the smiling face of Sarah as she sung. The last few lyrics struck him, he would never stop thinking about how different things might have been if only he could've convinced her to except his first offer; but after all, what's said is said.

"_Think of me, think of me waking. Silent and resigned, imagine me trying too hard to put you from my mind. Recall those days, look back on all those times. Think of those things we'll never do, there will never be a day… When I won't think of you."_

"Too true, Sarah-mine. Can it be?" He stroked his thumb over her face in the crystal. "It was not so long ago, but it seems so long ago. I remember how young and innocent and naïve you were. You may not remember me, precious, but I remember you," he told her image in the crystal.

"_Flowers fade, the fruits of summer fade, they have their seasons, so do we. But please promise me that sometimes… You will think of me!"_ Sarah sang the final note so well, he was afraid she might break the crystal in his hand.

That English gentleman and the female judge were on their feet even before the piano music had finished, applauding Sarah and shouting their 'bravo's!' and praises. Sarah was blushing modestly and shrugging it off, that was until what's-his-English-name and the female judge bent down to scribble something on the pieces of paper that bore Sarah's name.

And before the she knew what to do, the two judges were telling her that she was now a contestant on the show, causing his precious Sarah to burst into tears of joy.

Now he personally felt that while her voice was near perfection, that it could use a little… _'Fine-tuning'_. All the coaching that those mortals in the Aboveground could provide never help her: she needed a Fae's help. Seeing as how he granted the wish that gave her the beautiful chorus which was now her singing voice, he was going to have to be that Fae. Not that he minded.

After all, everyone needed an _Angel of Music_ every once in a while…


	2. Angel of Music

**Ok, so I want to thank **_**Sylphien**_** for agreeing to be my beta. She/he has read and revised chapter one and I have made the corrections, so if you'd like to re-read it you may.**

**Also, this is for **_**Honoria Granger**_**, I am sorry that I can't reply to you personally, but I do like to respond to my reviews so I hope you'll take the time to read this. And thank you! That review meant so much to me! And until you pointed it out, I didn't even know that he had been knighted. But, to make names in this story easier to remember, I'll just stick with calling him Andrew Lloyd Webber.**

**DISCALIMER: Forgot this last time, I own nothing. Except the OC's. Everything else, not mine.**

_Ten years ago, March 17__th__, 1998…_

"_Say it."_

"_No."_

"_Say it!"_

"_No!"_

"_Just say it, and she'll stop," Said the seven-year-old boy. His light, brown hair styled into an afro-like cut and his light blue eyes locked on his friend._

"_Yeah, and the sooner she stops, the sooner she'll shut up." A second boy with shoulder length dirty blonde hair said, blue eyes flashing._

_The boy they looked to exhaled in annoyance before glowering at the pretty six-year-old girl in question. He tugged his fingers through a fluff of brown hair, his bright hazel eyes angry "Fine Marley, _Hong Kong Phooey_ could beat _Jackie Chan_ in a fight."_

_Marley squealed in delight over her victory. Smugly, the girl replied "Thank you, Dereck, for finally seeing reason! Hey, Sarah, told you I could do it!"_

_The dark haired girl then happily skipped over to her friend with pale skin and wide green eyes. She was wearing a brightly colored scarf. Said girl rolled her eyes at her playmate. "Why did I ever doubt you?" she asked sarcastically._

_Marley either paid no attention or didn't notice, but it was probably the latter. "I told you, Sarah, It's just like my maid said! We girls have a power over boys. We just have to be able to use our certain charms to get that power. Now, obviously, I've learned at a young age. You… You still have a _looonnng _way to go!"_

_Sarah, deciding to be the better person here, just smiled sweetly and let herself fall behind the girl's skipping pace to walk with her friends. Sarah turned to the boy with an afro-like hair style and huffed. "Jacob, answer me one question: Why are we actually letting her hang around with us? I can't stand her and I know you guys can't either!"_

_Jacob scoffed. "Because lover-boy over there's so caught up in the fantasy that is Marley St. Cloud that he can't see straight!"_

_The boy then gestured to his friend with light brown-Farrah-_Charlie's-Angel_- like hair and doe brown eyes who was trailing along behind Marley, like a love-sick puppy. They all laughed at the sight. _

"_I knew Matt was an idiot, but I never knew he was a love-struck idiot," said Dereck._

"_It was only a matter of time before we lost him, boys," Sarah sighed._

"_Hey losers, pick up the pace! I'm not being paid to lose a kid." Dereck's older sister, Charlotte, a teenager with curly blonde hair and cold blue eyes, sneered at the kids._

_The blonde-haired boy smirked. "Bet'cha that's one of the _many_ things you get paid for."_

_She turned around and gave the blonde a deadly glare. "Zip it, River." Dereck, however, wasn't afraid of his sister. "But Charlie, it's like you told Cathy Santony yesterday, you'd do anything for five bucks!"_

_All the kids laughed at Charlotte's angry blush. Regaining her composure, the teenager stormed over to her brother, yanked him up by his shirt collar and seethed through her clenched teeth "I'm going to kill you!"_

"_Hey, Charlotte!" A male voice called. The said girl and the kids turned around turned to see a couple of teenage boys in varsity jackets smiling and waving at her. "Can you come here for a minute?"_

_Charlotte dropped her brother, smoothed out the wrinkles of her jeans, and set her face into a charming smirk before slowly sashaying over to the boys._

_Sarah stepped up. "Um… Hello? Earth to Charlotte, you're supposed to be baby-sitting us, remember?"_

_Charlotte stopped her sashaying and sneered at Sarah over her shoulder. "I'm busy you little twerps. You can go play in traffic for all I care!" the promiscuous teenager then continued flouncing toward the boys._

_Dereck looked around for a spot for him and his friends (and Marley), to sit while Charlotte went to… 'Talk' to those boys. He spotted a tree near a marble bench and, after offering and gaining no objection from his friends (and Marley), the group headed over._

_On their way, Marley had started humming a song that she eventually began to sing under her breath. Upon reaching their destination, Sarah finally turned to Marley. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but for once in my life I'm so jealous of you!"_

_Matt raised his brow. "Why's that?"_

"_Yeah, for once I'm with Matt." River turned to Sarah. "Why's that?"_

"_Because her Angel of Music is gonna come before mine!" Sarah pouted._

"_Her Angel of what now?" Jacob asked._

_Sarah raised an eyebrow at her friend. "What? You've never heard that story?"_

"_What story?" _

"_The story of the Angel of Music." Marley answered in a matter-of-fact tone._

_The four boys exchanged glances before shrugging. Dereck spoke up, "I guess we've never heard of it."_

_Sarah and Marley smiled. "Well, take a seat and we'll tell you!" The boys nodded and somehow the group formed a little circle at the base of the tree that Dereck had picked out. They proceeded to explain that on one of the many play-dates that Sarah and Marley's parents forced them into, Marley's maid had told them the story of the Angel of Music, and now they would share it with the boys._ _Which was met with varying reactions._

_A stupid smile had spread across Matt's face, and he appeared not to be paying a shred of attention to the girl's story. River, he was polite and listened to the story, but he appeared very bored. Jacob, seemed to be mocking the idea internally. Dereck was the only one who seemed to pay it the same amount of attention as the girls did._

"_As the story goes, there was once a girl called Little Lotte, who under the guidance of her mother, took to practice of her fiddle. But what no one knew was, that Lotte had been visited by her Angel of Music! It is said that every great artist is received by their Angel of Music at least once in their life, they might even lean over the child's cradle, as did so happen with Little Lotte, and that is why there are child prodigies who can play the fiddle at age four than any man at fifty can. But the catch is that a person's Angel of Music is never to be seen! But, if one is to be visited by their Angel-" Sarah explained. _

"_-Then one must always practice their talent with music! Be it singing or playing an instrument, one must always practice their craft, or their Angel will never come!" Marley finished._

"_Oh, so that's why you're jealous of Marley!" Dereck finally said. "You think that she's going to see her Angel of Music before you see yours!"_

"_Exactly!" Sarah smiled._

"_Ugh!" Jacob groaned. "Do you actually believe this crap?"_

"_Hey! That story's true! How else could my mom have become so successful on Broadway? Her Angel of Music visited her and gave her amazing singing abilities!" Sarah protested._

"_What is this? Some cheesy super-hero power transfer, fairy-princess meeting?" Jacob scoffed. "That's a fairy-tale ladies, and here's a little life lesson from your old, Uncle Jacob… Fairy-tales aren't real!"_

_Sarah and Marley scoffed. "They are too!"_

"_Are not!"_

"_Are too!"_

"_C'mon, boys, help me out here!" Jacob asked his three friends._

_Matt blinked. "I'm sorry, what'd you say? I was too busy thinking about chocolate cake."_

_River shrugged. "It seems like a kinda cool story girls, but Jacob's right, fairy-tales aren't real."_

"_What?" Marley cried. The girl then crossed her arms and turned her head away from the boys. "You boys are acting really dumb! Of course the Angel of Music is real!"_

_Sarah turned and locked her green eyes onto Dereck's hazel ones. "Dereck… You believe us… Don't you?"_

_Dereck shifted uncomfortably on the spot, his face turning a bright red. "Uh-bluh… Uh-bluh… Uh-bluh…"_

_Sarah raised a concerned brow at her best friend. "Dereck, are you ok?"_

_The boy nodded dumbly. "Uh-Uh yeah! Yeah! That story's totally real!" Dereck's face turned an even deeper shade of red before he said quietly, "I believe you, Sarah."_

_Sarah smiled bashfully, kicking a rock away, her face turning a bright shade of pink._

_Jacob and River, who were watching on, exchanged glances and muttered "And here I though Matt was a love-struck idiot…" in unison. _

_Marley, oblivious to anything that just happened, smirked smugly. "Ha! See boys, Dereck believes us!"_

_Then, as fate would have it, a white barn owl appeared in the tree above the children's heads. Its gaze fixed upon Sarah as it observed the children with great interest. But, that wasn't fates only move this time around, for suddenly, a wind came. A strong wind. So strong, it blew the scarf Sarah wore right off her neck._

_The young brunette realized this a second too late. "Oh no! No, no, no! Someone grab that scarf!"_

_Startled by Sarah's (of all people's) attachment, the gang sat for a second too long before trying to retrieve the scarf from the playful breeze. But it blew the scarf high above the children's heads. And when it finally did let the scarf down, it was in the middle of the nearby river._

_Sarah frowned. "Oh no! My scarf! My mother sent that scarf all the way from Milan."_

_As her other friends attempted to comfort their friend on the loss of her scarf, Dereck looked back from the saddened Sarah to the scarf that lay in the middle of the river. And then, despite that fact that it was only March and spring was barley raising a bud in the forbidding cold in St. Joseph, Michigan, Dereck bolted off in the direction of the river. _

"_Dereck?" Sarah shouted as she saw her best friend take off toward the river._

"_Hey man, where ya goin'?" Jacob shouted after him._

"_Just hang on a sec! I'll be right back!" He shouted as he reached the bed of the river and, before his friend's eyes, jumped into it._

"_Whoa!" River cried.  
"Dude!" Jacob shouted.  
"I'm gonna go get, Charlotte!" Marley told her friends, before charging off to get the teenager.  
"You got guts, bro!" Matt shouted after his friend, a smile on his face.  
"Dereck, get back here! You're gonna get sick!" Sarah yelled as she ran to the edge of the river._

_The white barn owl, which had gone unnoticed by the children, watched as Dereck frantically paddled further out into the river. The boy was obviously chasing after something, but the owl couldn't exactly make out what it was. Then, as the boy reached the middle of the river, he lunged for something and then immediately turned around and swam as fast as he could toward his friends. More specifically, Sarah, who awaited his return on the shore._

_As Dereck swam back to shore, the owl saw Marley and Charlotte run up to the boys, Charlotte wearing an angry frown on her face. When her baby brother was close enough to the shore, she voiced just how angry she was. "What the hell is wrong with you, you little twerp?! I was talking to Stephen Harldson when Mary-"_

"_Marley," the girl corrected. _

"_Like I care! I was busy talking when this chick came and dragged me away! And I come here to find what? You! Swimming in the river! Why the hell are you swimming in the river anyway? It's March you idiot!"_

_Dereck ignored his sister and, shivering with his lips already turning a pale shade of blue, approached Sarah. He held up one hand. Upon further inspection, one could see that the boy held an extremely wet scarf in his hand. "H-H-Her-re's y-your s-sc-sca-arf, S-Sar-r-rah."_

_Sarah stared at her best friend in awe as she took her scarf back. "You… You just swam in freezing river water, in the middle of March, just to get my scarf back?"_

"_O-Of c-cour-rse! I-I'd d-do a-a-anyt-t-thing f-for y-you!" Dereck shivered, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly._

_Sarah smiled shyly as her face turned a scarlet color. "Thank you, Dereck. That means a lot to me."_

_The two kids were blissfully unaware of Charlotte ranting about how absurd the whole thing was as she pulled the kids away from the river and toward Sarah's house. _

_The barn owl watched on. And if one didn't knew better, it would have seemed as though he was glaring at Dereck as he walked away; the boy's hands sometimes 'accidentally' brushing against Sarah's._

_Sarah, June 7__th__, 2008…_

Sarah could hardly believe her luck. She and Marley had both been picked to be contestants on _The Music of the Night_, along with ten other girls. It was a dream come true! By the end of summer, someone would be picked to play the role of Christine.

From her dressing room, Sarah admired her reflection in the mirror. As a way of telling all the Christine's apart, the girls would be wearing one distinct color whenever they performed. No matter what they wore, they had to at least wear one article of clothing that bore that specific color. For Marley, it was a sapphire blue color (One that complemented her dark features), for another girl that Sarah had seen on her way to her dressing room, it was lime green color (One that oddly went well with the girl's bright red hair), and for Sarah, it was a pale green that brought out her eyes.

The dress that Sarah wore bore that color. It was an off-the shoulder dress with ruffled sleeves which had black lace trimmings, hem of the neckline and the hem of the skirt. A black, button up bodice, black belt, and a bright red underskirt made up the rest of the dress. As the brunette twirled, she saw flashes of her pale green tights, and black, high-heeled, worker boots. To tie the dress together, there was a black choker with a golden locket that bore the show's logo on the front.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Sarah smiled as she reached towards her desk and gently grasped a raven black mask, one that would cover her eyes and the bridge of her nose. The mask was outlined by tiny little sequined pearls and, in the center, there was a large sequined aquamarine. As Sarah took a step back, she admired herself in the mirror. For once in her life, Sarah felt as though she was pretty.

"_You look beautiful, my pet."_

Sarah jumped at the sound, quickly spinning on her heel to investigate. She found that no one was in the room. Confused, Sarah blinked.

"_Come now, my dear… Surely you must remember me…"_

It was the fact that the voice echoed throughout the room that tipped Sarah off, and while some of the fear subsided, it did not go away entirely. "A-Angel? Is that you?"

"_Could it be anyone else, Sarah-mine?"_

The rich baritone of her Angel's voice sent involuntary shivers down Sarah's spine. Ever since her audition last May, she had been having dreams. Dreams that involved her Angel of Music. Sarah had all but forgotten the old fairy-tale that Marley's maid had told them as young children. But he said that he had come to help Sarah perfect her craft in singing. Believing that she needed all the help she could get, Sarah readily accepted her Angel's offer for lessons.

After that, Sarah could always tell when he was with her. It would always be in the little signs that something was amiss. The sudden coldness in a room, the whispers of her name, or perhaps the shifting of the shadows. The shifting in the shadows that suggested a man was nearby. A _masked_ man.

That was another thing, whenever her Angel of Music appeared, he was always masked. Sarah never had the courage to ask why he wore that mask. It certainly added to the mystery that was her Angel. Yet it also added to her growing fear of him.

"What're-What're you doing here, Angel? Why can't I see you?"

"_Have you been able to see me in the past, my darling pupil?"_ her Angel asked, teasingly.

"Touché. But what're you doing here?' She asked the air. If her Angel could hear her, surely that meant he could see her.

"_I am merely observing my star pupil in her debut, is that so wrong?"_

Before Sarah could reply, there was a knock at the door. "Time to report to the stage, Miss Williams."

"Yes, I'm coming!" the girl replied.

Sarah listened as the man's footsteps faded down the hallway. Then, her Angel spoke.

"_Show time, Sarah-mine. And remember, I'll be watching you…"_

Sarah nodded mutely before she exited her dressing room. She made her way down the hallway, both in the direction of the stage_ and _in search of Marley. She felt as though she was being followed. She turned around to see if anyone was following her (no one was) and accidentally bumped into someone else.

"Hey!" a high, bird-like voice shouted. Sarah turned and found herself face to face with a mess of red curls on top of a head that wore a lime green version of her dress. Instead of an aquamarine on this girl's mask, it was a sequined peridot. "Watch where you're going next time!"

"I'm sorry! I thought-"

The girl in lime green scoffed. "Yeah, apparently, you weren't thinking at all!"

"Listen, I'm really sorry-" Sarah began again.

"Sorry? You're _sorry_? Oh, listen here, girly! I-"

"Hey!" a voice shouted.

Much to Sarah's relief, Marley appeared at her side. Wearing a Sapphire blue version of the two dresses before her; on her mask she wore a sequined sapphire. "Back off! It was an accident _and_ my friend said she was sorry!"

The girl in lime green regarded the two girls with distaste. "You two are both seventeen, right?"

"I'm sixteen... Why?" Marley shot back.

The girl ignored it. "The youngest competitors, am I wrong?"

Sarah and Marley exchanged uneasy glances before turning back to the girl in lime green. "No… Why?"

The girl smirked viscously. "You won't last three weeks, twerps!" and then the girl practically skipped down the hall. Sarah turned to Marley and offered her thanks.

"No problem, but we should avoid that girl at all costs. That's Donna Daaé, her mom's a Broadway legend. She's been coached vocally since before she could walk!"

Sarah quirked a brow at her friend. "And you know this _how_?"

Marley shrugged. "What? I'm a gossiping bitch. You know this!"

"Oh _how_ I know it!"

"Hey, shut up!" Marley laughed as she shoved Sarah playfully. Before the girls could continue any further with their little game, the stage manager appeared and ushered them onto the stage.

_Meanwhile…_

He stood in front of his mirror. Scowling.

The _Angel of Music_, Sarah had called him. He scoffed _No angel should ever look this hideous._ He thought, disgusted with what appeared before him in the mirror. _The burn of rejection runs deeper than you think, Sarah-mine. Why else would I be forced to wear this _ridiculous_ mask?_

If he were to be honest, he would admit that he had felt the burn coming for about a month now. The sensitive area around his nose and the top of his eyes stung for the longest of times after his defeat. But it wasn't until now that it was becoming visible. So visible that no healing or beauty spell could fix or hide it. Forcing him to hide under the mask.

He knew that his beloved Sarah was technically at fault for this—and he'd be lying if he said he didn't resent her just a little for it—but what could you do? What's said is said, after all.

Now that he thought about it, wasn't Sarah's show supposed to be starting soon? He smirked as he slid his mask back into place. "Show time…" he whispered as he conjured up a crystal.

A man with a bad blonde comb-over and a big—nearly _too_ big—smile appeared in his crystal. _"Hello America! I'm Gerald Bottler—and welcome to the newest thing to hit your country since the Beatles crossed over from the pond, _Andrew Lloyd Webber_'s _The Music of the Night_!"_ Gerald Bottler was greeted by a round of applause and cheers. _"Now, behind me, we have twelve beautiful girls who came from all across America for a chance to become Broadway's newest star! But, which girl will it be? It's up to you, the viewing audience! And, of course, our judges! The producer of _The Phantom of the Opera_ himself, _Mr_. _Andrew Lloyd Webber_"_ Cheers were heard as said man waved politely to the crowd. _"Our casting director, Ms. Karley O'Hara!"_ The blonde woman from the audition's smiled brightly at the audience. _"And our choreographer and vocal professionalist, Mr. Keith Osburne!"_ More cheers and applause as a man with shaggy black hair stood up and did a little dance for the crowd.

He zoned out after this, barley paying attention as Gerald Bottler further explained the rules and introduced all twelve girls behind him. Somewhere deep in his mind, he acknowledged Sarah's friend Marley, but his focus remained solely on Sarah. She looked stunning on stage, and while her choice of outfit was sublime, he couldn't help but wish that she didn't have to wear that mask. It hid her beautiful face far too much for his liking.

When he came back to the crystal Gerald Bottler exclaimed _"And now, without further ado, I present to you, our lovely Christine's, and their little performance of _Masquerade_!"_ As the host dashed off stage, a bright trumpet flourish and the orchestra started to play. All the girls, wearing small smirks or smiles began to dance around on stage and sing.

"_Masquerade! Paper faces on parade . . . Masquerade! Hide your face, so the world will never find you! Masquerade! Every face a different shade . . . Masquerade! Look around - there's another mask behind you!"_

"_Flash of mauve . . ."_ a girl in pink sang. _"Splash of puce . . ."_ the girl in lime green sang. "_Fool and king . . ."_ sang the girl in light blue. _"Ghoul and goose . . ."_ was the girl in gold. _"Green and black . . ."_ sang another in purple. _"Queen and priest . . ."_ a girl in yellow sang. "Trace of rouge . . ." was the girl in orange. _"Face of beast . . ." _sang the last girl in red.

"_Faces! Take your turn, take a ride on the merry-go-round, in an inhuman race!"_ The chorus of girls sang together as they twirled their skirts elegantly on stage.

"_Eye of gold, thigh of blue . . ."_ a girl in lilac sang. _"True is false, who is who . . .?"_ a girl in baby pink sang. _"Curl of lip, swirl of gown . . ."_ the girls in orange and gold sang together. _"Ace of hearts, face of clown . . ." _the girls in lime green and baby pink sang together.

"_Faces! Drink it in, drink it up, till you've drowned, in the light, in the sound-"_ all the girls sang together.

"_-But who can name the face?"_ Marley and Sarah winked at the cameras. He felt a thrill of excitement run through him as he saw Sarah wink.

"_Masquerade! Burning glances, turning heads . . . Masquerade! Stop and stare at the sea of smiles around you! Masquerade! Seething shadows, breathing lies . . . Masquerade! You can fool any friend who ever knew you! Masquerade! Leering satyrs, peering eyes . . . Masquerade! Run and hide - but a face will still pursue you! Masquerade! Grinning yellows, spinning reds! Masquerade! Take your fill -let the spectacle astound you!"_

The audience practically exploded with applause; all of them on their feet, clapping and cheering for the twelve talented girls on stage. Gerald Bottler raced back onto stage and in front of the crowd of Christine's. _"Stay tuned for our challenge of the week and our Christine's individual performances!"_ the crystal went dark for a moment before it showed a golden locket with a thin crimson question mark on it. He took that as his queue and, with a mere flick of his wrist, the crystal disappeared. Then he smirked.

_So, my little _Angel of Music_, let's see how much you've learned._

_Meanwhile, with Sarah…_

During the time that the show's producers were airing a challenge that they had shot earlier that week (in which basically showed off the girls' ability to work under pressure by having them work at a crowded food court in a shopping center near the studio); the girls had been given songs that they were to practice and outfits to change into.

Sarah was sort of wishing she had never auditioned for this show in the first place. The excitement from the first song and appearance had died down and now the nerves were eating away at her insides. The song that she was to be singing was _I Love Rock 'N' Roll,_ by _Joan Jett_. Sarah was thanking every god she knew of that she had been lucky enough to have a friend like Jacob, who had loved that song so much that it had made up such a huge part of her childhood.

Glancing at herself in the mirror, Sarah frowned. She understood why the dress she was wearing for the opening number didn't really fit with the song she was going to sing, but she was just wishing she could still wear that. She felt extremely uncomfortable in her new outfit—a sleeveless, pale green top that hugged her upper-body, a pale green bracelet, a black leather belt, black skinny jeans, and black stilettos. Her locket still ever present and her hair held back by a pale green headband.

An odd beeping sound came from her dresser; Sarah recognized it as a pre-set ringtone that she had set for her friend Matt. Sure enough, when she picked up her phone she saw a picture of a boy with brown-Farrah-like hair on the screen. Laughing, Sarah pressed the accept button.

"What'd you want, Matt?"

"_Just to wish my best friend in the entire world the best of luck! And to tell you that I'm going to be videotaping this from the audience and posting it on YouTube later, so you better make it good!"_

"Oh boy, pressure's on now, isn't it?" The two friends laughed and Sarah heard something very familiar in the back ground. Singing. Marley singing. "Are you sitting in the audience right now?"

"_Well duh! How else am I supposed to video tape Marley singing on my phone?"_

"You know you're talking on your phone right now, right?" There was a slight pause before she heard Matt swear under his breath. Still laughing, Sarah spoke into her phone "Hey, hold up the phone, I wanna hear Marley perform!"

Matt had apparently complied, because Marley's voice came through the handset, clearer than it had before. _"His name was Rico, he wore a diamond. He was escorted to his chair, he saw Lola dancing there. And she finished, he called her over. But Rico went a bit too far, Tony sailed across the bar. And then the punches flew and chairs were smashed in two. There was blood and a single gunshot—but just who shot who?"_ Sarah recognized the lyrics to the song _Copacabana_.

Of course, Marley would get a song that was easy to dance to on stage. Of course, Marley would get the song that would easily help bring out her confidence. Marley would be literally putting _Barry Manilow_ to shame at that very moment, just by singing that song for a stupid contest!

Sarah bit her lip to hold back the 'It's not fair!' that threatened to spill out.

"_She's pretty good right?"_ Matt's voice brought her back to reality.

"As always… I have to go now Matt, I'm probably going to be performing anytime soon."

"_Alright, break-a-leg, Sarah!"_

"Thanks, Matt. Bye."

"_Bye Sarah-Oh, wait! Wait! Don't hang up!"_

"Why?"

"_I almost forgot-"_

"That's a shocker…"

"_Very funny. But when I went to use the bathroom, guess who I saw at the back of the audience, sitting with his sister and his parent's?"_

"If you say _Jayden Smith_, I swear to God I will come out into that audience and kick your ass all the way to Europe."

"_Dereck Foreman."_

If Sarah had been hit by a train at that very moment, she wouldn't have felt it. Her entire body went numb as the name echoed through her head. _Dereck Foreman… Dereck Foreman…_ It filled her with excitement, and she felt her heart pounding in her head, as butterflies filled her stomach.

But then, reality came and slapped her in the face with a harsh realization.

"But, that's impossible. He's in Africa! He's been in Africa for the past two and a half years!"

"_That's what I thought! But when I went to go see if it was him I heard his dad call him dumbass, right after Dereck made some crappy _Star Wars_ reference!"_

Sarah couldn't stop the smile form spreading on her face. _It's him… Dereck's back… He's back from Africa… He's back from Africa… Dereck Foreman was back from Africa and was in the audience and was about to watch her perform!_

That was when Sarah stuttered out a good-bye to Matt before hanging up the phone. Immediately, after she tossed the phone onto her dresser she proceeded to do a tiny, little happy dance, while squealing with excitement.

_He's back! He's back! Dereck's back in America! He's gonna watch me perform! And he's-_ That's when that metaphorical train hit Sarah hard again. _Dereck is in the audience and he and his entire family are gonna watch me perform! Live!_

All the worst case scenarios started running rapidly through her head. Falling on stage, messing up the song, and singing horribly out of tune... either way; none of them were good, and they always ended with Dereck thinking Sarah was a complete and utter idiot.

All too soon, the stage manager was knocking at her door, telling her that she was next. Saying a quick prayer to God and her Angel of Music (wherever he was), she slowly made her way out of the room.

She was not looking forward to the next five minutes of her life.

_Meanwhile…_

That Marley girl was a good performer, he would admit to that. Good voice, excellent stage presence, and most importantly, lots of confidence. But, he wasn't that impressed with her. No, she was just a mere mortal girl in presence of a true _Angel of Music_. Finally, when he heard Sarah's name being called, and saw her making her way up a staircase to the top of the stage, his ability to breath momentarily left him when she appeared. He knew that this was what he had been waiting for since this foolish mortal show had begun.

Slow rock guitar and drum sounds filled his ears, as Sarah slowly made her way down the steps. She looked directly at the camera, trying to fake her way into confidence, but he could see the nervousness in her eyes. "Don't be afraid, precious. I am here… I shall always be here…"

Then Sarah started to sing, a small smirk appearing on her face. _"I saw him dancing' there by the record machine. I knew he must've been about seventeen… The beat was going' strong… Playin' my favorite song, An' I could tell it wouldn't be long… Till he was with me, yeah me! An' I could tell it wouldn't be long… Till he was with me, yeah me, singing'- I love rock n' roll! So put another dime in the jukebox, baby! I love rock n' roll! So come an' take your time an' dance with me! Ow!"_

He let out another involuntary moan of pleasure. Her voice wasn't perfect, but it was so damn close that it rocked him! The audience was loudly clapping and shouting (he felt a tiny flicker of jealousy as he heard some males in the crowd wolf-whistle and cat-call at his beloved Sarah) and greatly enjoying her performance.

"_He smiled so I got up and asked for his name 'That don't matter', he said 'Cause it's all the same… Said 'Can I take you home where we can be alone?' An' next we were moving' on…He was with me, yeah me! Next we were moving' on… He was with me, yeah me, singing'- I love rock n' roll! So put another dime in the jukebox, baby! I love rock n' roll! So come an' take your time an' dance with me! Ow!"_

The camera panned over to a certain section of the audience and he saw her parents, Toby and all of her friends clapping and cheering for her. It panned over a second time to show that all the judges were clapping and bopping their heads to the beat. He found that his foot had begun to tap in time to the beat, and he stopped it soon afterwards.

"_Said, Can I take you home where we can be alone?... An' next we were moving on…  
He was with me, yeah me… An we'll be moving' on… An' singing' that same old song…Yeah with me, singing'- I love rock n' roll! So put another dime in the jukebox, baby! I love rock n' roll! So come an' take your time an' dance with me!"_

After her performance, no one was sitting in their seats. They were all on their feet giving her a standing ovation. One she greatly deserved. He couldn't stop the smile or laugh that bubbled out of him, especially after he realized a certain truth.

The more her voice grew in loveliness, and the more the audience loved her, the more she relied on him to teach her how to be better at her new found craft.

The more she relied on him, the more his power over her increased.

_Meanwhile, with Sarah…_

After the show, Sarah dashed back to her dressing room. That Donna girl she had bumped into earlier had been voted off, and while she had held herself gracefully on stage, off-stage, she was a raging ball of red-hair and lime green fabrics. She blamed Marley and Sarah (for whatever dumb reason) for her loss

Maybe it was because both girls had received the highest number of viewer votes, and were therefore allowed to stay on the show another week.

_I made it!_ Sarah though gleefully, once she made it back to her dressing room. Better yet, she hadn't made a fool of herself on stage—or in front of Dereck and his family. Even better than that, Matt and the others had volunteered to go and find him after the show and bring him back stage so she could see him again. Two and a half years of exchanging letters and Facebook messages just couldn't compare to actually talking to someone like Dereck in person.

Suddenly, feeling very self-conscious in her stage dress, Sarah ran to the mirror to fix her appearance, but stopped once she saw an object that definitely hadn't been there when she had left for the final results, sitting on her dresser.

A perfect red rose with a black ribbon tied around the stem.

Slowly, as if she was approaching an injured animal, Sarah made her way over to her dresser. As she picked up the rose gently and gave it a delicate sniff, she heard a haunting baritone voice whisper echo throughout her dressing room, a voice that chilled her to the very bone. _"Brava! Brava! Bravissima!"_

It was her Angel.

"_Sarah, Sarah."_ A female voice outside her door called faintly.

Her Angel's voice echoed throughout the room again, but this time, softer, as if the word he spoke was worth as much as diamonds _"Sarah…"_

Not bothering to knock, Marley threw open the door. Smiling brightly, she practically tackled her best friend in a hug. "Where in the world have you been hiding? Really, you were perfect! I only wish I knew your secret, tell me, who is your great teacher?"

Silence filled the room as Sarah glanced down at the rose in her hands. _Would she even believe me? Would Marley even believe something as absurd as this?_ Sarah glanced at her friend. "Do you remember that story your maid used to tell us when we were little? The one about the Angel of Music? Well, I've met mine. Now as I sing I can sense him and I know he's here!" Sarah gestured to the room, a hint of a smile appearing on her face. "Here in this room and he calls to me softly, somewhere inside here, hiding. Somehow, I know, he's always with me… He - the unseen genius…"

Marley lightly placed a hand on Sarah's shoulder. "Sarah, you must have been dreaming, stories like that can't come true!" Stepping in front of her friend, Marley saw that Sarah was gazing dreamily at the rose in her hands. "Sarah, you're talking in riddles and it's not like you…"

Knowing very well that her Angel was watching her now, and that he preferred it when she sang, (and that maybe if he were to appear Marley would believe her) Sarah began to sing. _"Angel of music—guide and guardian! Grant to me your glory!"_

_Who is this strange Angel?_ Marley thought, perplexed. Believing that this was one of Sarah's more dramatic moments (that or she was as high as a damn kite), the girl decided to play along and join Sarah in her song. _"Angel of music, hide no longer! Secret and strange, angel!"_

That was when Sarah noticed that the room had gotten colder. She thought she saw something move in the mirror. Glancing up, she saw a man cloaked in shadows and a white mask that covered most of his face in her mirror, Sarah gasped and dropped her rose. She felt her blood run cold. "He's with me even now…"

"Holy—Sarah, you're so cold!" Marley said, shocked at her best friend's sudden temperature change.

Sarah heard a deep baritone laughter and nervously glanced around the room. "All around me…"

"Your face, Sarah, _its sheet white_!" Marley exclaimed as she noticed her friends startled face in the mirror.

"It frightens me…" Sarah admitted as her body began to shiver in fear.

"Don't be frightened," Marley said, bringing her friend into a comforting hug.

Neither girl was aware that from somewhere, someone was watching them. Watching Sarah most of all. Wanting nothing more than to reach out and bring her to him.


	3. Lessons of Music

**Sorry that this took so long! This was very hard for me to write! In fact, I spilt this chapter in half, so there's more after this. But this chapter is extra-long, so I hope this makes up for two things. 1): How long this took and 2): The fact that I'll be leaving for vacation soon and won't be back for two weeks. I leave on Tuesday and won't be back for a little over two weeks. Don't worry, I have chapter two started, just need to finish and get it beta-ed. **

**Also, this is for **_**POTO fan**_**. Like I said last chapter, I like to respond to my reviewers, but I can't PM you so… Anyway, I'm glad that you like this story. And I didn't put this in the crossovers because I didn't think it would get as many reviews. And I forgot the original Phantom's name was Erik! **** I actually based all of Sarah's friends off characters from one of my favorite shows, and one of them just happened to be Eric, I forgot about that! I like you're little emoticon there! Mind if I use it every now and again?**

**DISCLAIMER: Still don't own a thing! But if you can guess the show from which I based Sarah's friends off of, I'll bake you a virtual chocolate cake!**

A knocking at the door brought both girls back to reality. Without even waiting for a response, the door opened and revealed Sarah's father and mother (technically step-mother) and Toby. Before his parents were even completely in the room, Toby charged at Sarah and wrapped his chubby little arms around her legs. "Sawah sing good!"

For a moment, her _Angel of Music_ was the last thing on Sarah's mind. She smiled and knelt down to his height and pulled him into her arms. "Thank you Toby, that means a lot to me!"

"Psst! Sarah!" Irene, her mother, whispered. "He brought you something."

"Oh he did, did he?" Sarah smiled while Toby dug something out of his overall's pocket and presented her with a tiny, folded, but slightly crushed daisy. Some of the petals had fallen off and it looked as though the flower was past the point of no return, but Toby was looking at her with that wide, toothy smile and his eyes looked so innocent that Sarah felt her heart swell.

Gently she plucked the flower from her baby-brother's hand and hugged it to her chest, sniffing it. "It's beautiful, Toby! I love it, really! Thank you!"

Pride filled the three year olds eyes. "Mama! Mama! Did'cha see! Sawah like my gif! Sawah like my gif!" he called as he practically waddled back over to his mother.

Irene laughed proudly as she picked up her beloved son. "Well of course she did! It was given to her by you, silly boy!"

Robert, cleared his throat, alerting everyone to his presence on the room. "You were beautiful, pumpkin! No one else held a candle to you!" he presented her with a bouquet of daisies. Sarah was starting to get an idea of where her brother had gotten the daisy he given her.

As Sarah accepted the flowers, Marley huffed in an annoyed pretense "It's good to know that I matter!"

Robert looked apologetically at his daughter's friend. "No, No, Marley I didn't mean it that way. You were fantastic! Best one out there!

"Dad!"

"No… I mean…you both were spectacular in your own ways, but you both shined as a…Um, a…uh…?"

"Robert?" Irene smiled sympathetically at her husband. "Please, for the sake of us all, stop."

As Toby, Sarah, and Marley jokingly agreed with Irene, Robert's face had turned a lovely shade of crimson. The man in question was a good sport about it though, brushing it off and even joining in on the teasing.

"What's so funny, dudes?" A male voice asked.

A man who looked to be in his late fifties was standing in the doorway. He looked to be the picture definition of the word 'dead-beat'. Worn out clothes, long, ash colored hair. He had a thick, black-gray beard, a dopey smile and he seemed to smell of weed.

Although how Sarah would know knew what weed smelt like was something she'd rather not admit to in front of her family…

She smiled at her boss. "Nothing Liam, just a family bonding moment."

Liam nodded. "Well, hey man, you did amazing up there! Both of you did! Oh, Sarah, that reminds me, I'm gonna need you to work the counter at _PhotoHut!_ tomorrow."

Sarah blinked at her boss. "I can't Liam, I have to stay here… in New York… so I can stay on the show… but I'll be happy to work the counter once I get back!"

"Alright, but when you get back, you're on probation," Liam paused for a minute, "no wait, you're not on probation, I am… Oh crap, I gotta check with my probation officer, man."

Irene smiled—albeit a forced one—at her daughter's boss. "Well… isn't it lovely to see you again, Mr. Chingkwake?"

"Thanks Mrs. Sarah's Mom! That means a lot to me!" Liam smiled bashfully.

Sarah rolled her eyes, but then realized that Liam was the only one of her friends (besides Marley and Toby) to come visit her after the show. She remembered what Matt had said about going to find Dereck and Sarah felt her heart rate increasing. "So… um, where are… where are the others?"

Liam looked behind himself, surprised, then turned to Sarah. "Whoa… I think they pulled a _Houdini_ on me man, I swear that they were right behind me!"

Robert hummed in concentration "Now that I think about it, Matt and the others were all very excited about something after the show."

"I was too!" Marley exclaimed, "Especially after that Donna girl was voted off! Ugh, God she was such a b-" Marley trailed of uncertainly, noticing Irene and Sarah's nasty glares and Toby's innocent smile. Finally, the girl smiled nervously. "-Big Meanie! I couldn't stand her!"

"Nice save, Mar," Sarah patted her friend on the shoulder. "Nice save."

There was a knock on the door and River stuck his head in and sang _"Hello!-"_

He was soon followed by Jacob who stuck in his head just above River's and sang a higher octave _"Hello!-"_

Followed swiftly by Wes (Sarah's lovely foreign friend from the country of God-knows-where) who sang in a surprisingly high, foreign accented voice. _"Hello!-" _

"Hi!" All three boys chorused together as they stepped (or in Wes's case, stumbled) into Sarah's dressing room.

Toby laughed and clapped his hands at his sister's friend's little tribute to the _Three Stooges_ and loudly said "Again! Again!"

"Maybe later, squirt." Jacob smiled and nudged Toby playfully. "We just came to wish your sister and Marley congratulations on a great show."

"Thanks Jacob, that means a lot to us." Marley smiled at him.

Sarah looked around in and saw that neither Matt (nor Dereck for that matter) were back yet. Trying to play it cool, Sarah looked around before innocently asking "Where the hell is Matt?"

River and Jacob saw straight through her little ruse, evident by the knowing smirks they wore on their faces. But it was Wes who, obviously smiling, told her that Matt had said something about going to find the bathroom before dashing away while singing _"My best friend's back from Af-ri-ca! Do-Da! Do-Da!"_

Sarah faked confusion. "Oh, really?"

"Yes, it was all very strange," Wes replied, shaking his head. "I thought that man already went to the bathroom. Oh well, his bladder is the size of a pea after all."

Wes's chuckle died in his throat after he saw the weird looks everyone in the room was giving him. Even Toby.

Irene was the one to break the silence first. "I didn't know you kids knew someone from Africa."

"Oh yeah, it's Sarah's old friend Dereck. He moved a few months before we got married, honey. I don't think you ever got to meet him or his lovely family. Or his sister." Robert's face puckered like he had just tasted something sour at the mention of the oldest Foreman child.

"But why would he move all the way to Africa?" Irene asked. Then her eyes lit up, "wait, did you just say _Sarah's old friend_?"

"Mom!" Sarah blushed like a cherry tomato.

"His dad's in the army, they moved around a lot before he was born," Marley explained. "He and his moved to Africa about—what? Two? Three years ago?"

"Two and a half," Sarah pointed out; but after looking at Irene's mischievous/knowing gaze she lowered her head in embarrassment.

"What was his dad stationed in Africa for?" Irene asked, deciding to let her daughter's obvious fondness for this Dereck boy go. For now anyway.

"From what he said on Facebook… I guess there were some serious terrorist problems? Which means his dad was probably having the time of his life." River said dryly.

"Mr. Foreman lives and breathes for three things in this world," Jacob started to explain, noting Irene's confused expression. "And that's making Dereck's life a living hell, bacon, and shoving his foot up a bunch of terrorist asses before he shoves a Twenty-Two up their nose."

Toby looked at his mother in confusion. "What does a Twenty-Two mean, mommy?"

"I'll tell you when you're older, sweetie." Irene said gruffly, sending a nasty glare in his direction.

"_I got him!"_ Matt's excited voice rang from outside, down the hall. You could practically hear him smiling. _"I got him guys!"_

"What's going on?" Robert asked no one in particular.

"Oh, just a little reunion," River smirked.

"What_ kind _of reunion, exactly?" Irene asked, hugging Toby tightly to her chest.

"I got him! I got him guys!" Matt shouted one last time before he and someone else stumbled and eventually crashed to the floor of Sarah's dressing room. Panting and smiling like an idiot, Matt glanced up at Sarah. "I got… I got him… Whoo! Man, I need to join a gym!"

The other person—A boy around Sarah's age with fluffy brown hair—grunted before punching Matt. If it wasn't for the fact that Matt was already lying on the floor, he would've doubled over from the pain. The boy stood up and glared at Matt. "Dude, what the hell was that for?! You just ran up and dragged me all the way back here! You know you basically just kidnapped me and-"

"Hi Dereck." Sarah said in a voice, just barely above a whisper.

Surprisingly, the boy heard her and spun around. His sparkling hazel eyes widened in surprise. "Hey SaRah! Hi HeLLo!" Dereck was obviously so nervous and excited about seeing Sarah again that his voice cracked. He cleared his throat and in an attempt to look more appealing to Sarah, leaned against her dresser and trying again in a voice that didn't make him sound like he was still going through puberty. "Hey baby."

Sarah giggled girlishly (Something that made her family _and_ her friends' give her even odder looks). "So…"

"So…"

You could have cut the silence in the room with a butter knife.

Finally, Robert cleared his throat and stepped over to Dereck. Standing at his full height to seem like the protective father that he was. "Dereck, it's good to see you again."

Dereck shrunk back. "It's good to see you again too, Mr. Williams. Oh, congratulations on the second marriage! And the whole… new kid… thing..."

"Do you want to meet him?" Sarah asked, never once had she taken her eyes off Dereck.

Dereck nodded and Sarah motioned for Irene to bring Toby over from the corner of the room. Dereck smiled at Sarah's little brother. "Hey buddy? What's your name?"

Toby smiled shyly and buried his face in his mother's shoulder. Irene laughed and patted her son on the head. "His name's Toby. He's three now."

Dereck tapped Toby on the shoulder lightly. "Toby eh? Awesome name! Y'know, if my parents never named me Dereck, I would've wanted to be named Toby."

Toby lifted his head and sent Dereck a smile. "Really?"

"Yeah! Of course!"

"I thought you always wanted to be named Hans Solo?" Sarah asked, which sent laughter throughout the room.

Dereck smirked (not in a way that would suggest that he was plotting her downfall, but in a joking sort of way. One you just couldn't help but love). "Oh, really? Says the girl who wanted to be named Ophelia after that crazy chick in Hamlet?"

Sarah laughed. "Ok! Ok! You're a sci-fi nerd and I'm a theater nerd, can we call it a truce?"

"Of course." Dereck smiled.

"So," Irene said after the laughter died down. "How long have you two known each other?"

Sarah blushed. "Oh… um, I don't know… probably about ten years or so."

"Eleven years, actually. Remember? We met on March 14th 1997. We were both six and I just moved in right next door to you." He locked his hazel eyes onto Sarah's green ones.

Sarah's blush deepened. "You-You remember the day we first me?"

"I even remember _how_ we first met."

"Ooh!" Wes smiled. "Is this a sexy story?"

"It's… It's really more _sad_ than sexy." Sarah admitted.

"Yeah…" Dereck chuckled a little bit at the memory.

"Story of your life, isn't it?" Jacob asked Dereck, smiling.

"… Yeah…" Dereck trailed off sadly.

Not wanting to see her best friend (_Just my best friend! Nothing else!_ Sarah mentally assured herself), whom she had known since her childhood pitying himself, she grabbed his hand and squeezed it before asking brightly "So, if you remember how that day went, why don't you tell me?"

Dereck smiled and laughed lightly. "I had just moved into the house next door. I, my mom and my dad were coming to bring a cake over to your hose when you and your dad met us halfway, you guys were bringing a cherry pie."

_He really does remember everything… Even the flavor of the pie… That's so sweet…_ Sarah thought adoringly.

"So, my mom introduced me and my dad to your dad, and then he introduced himself and you to me." Dereck continued. "And then my mom told me to say hi to you, and then when I _actually saw_ you for the first time—I just stopped thinking. I mean, I saw you, and I just… I don't know… It was just you there…"

Sarah smiled bashfully and turned away. She knew what happened next. Dereck knew too, but he had to hear it from her. "Do you remember the first thing you ever said to me?"

"What're you looking at, _string bean_?" Sarah and Dereck laughed in unison.

"Sarah!" Irene admonished. "You _really_ said that!"

"What can I say? He was creepy back then!"

"Oh, you should hear what she did _after_ that!" Dereck told Irene smugly.

"Oh god, really?" Sarah asked, embarrassed.

"What did she do?" Irene asked.

"I punched him in the stomach…" Sarah said quietly.  
"She punched me in the stomach!" Dereck exclaimed, dramatically.

Sarah and Dereck's friends (And even Toby) started to point and laugh at Dereck. Once Jacob finally calmed down, he choked out: "Oh man, Foreman getting beat up by a girl, seems like only yesterday… Oh wait, probably happened yesterday too!"

Even Sarah had to giggle at this. "Oh yeah, laugh it up everybody." Dereck said casually. "You guys weren't punched by _Madame Man-Hands_ over here…" The boy gestured to Sarah whose mouth made the perfect little 'O' of mock offence.

"I do not have Man-Hands! They just seem that way because _you_ have little doll hands!" Sarah joked, poking Dereck in the ribs.

"Seriously though, did you have to call me string bean?" Dereck laughed.

"At least it's better than what you did after I punched you? Do you remember that, Foreman?" Sarah smirked at her friend's embarrassed blush. "I do. I remember it _perfectly_!"

"What'd he say? What'd he say?" Marley begged her friend, anxious to hear any form of gossip.

Sarah batted her eyes and smiled dreamily before sighing "Wow… you're _strong_…"

"I did not say it like that!"

"You totally did! I remember!"

Matt let out a high pitched giggle. "Wow, Foreman, you were a sucker even back then!"

Dereck raised a brow. "So says the guy who trailed around after Marley like a lost puppy for _seven years_!"

Matt blushed and shrank back. Sarah smirked. "Followed soon by River who trailed around after her for a year-"

"Hey!"

"-And Jacob who has followed her around for two years now."

"We broke up!" Jacob cried.  
"Don't remind me!" Marley cringed at the memory of the past two years she (regretfully) spent with Jacob.

Sensing that they were starting to over stay their welcome, Irene went over and hugged her daughter before saying "Well, we should get going. We have to get to the hotel. We have a long flight ahead of us tomorrow morning."

After good-byes were exchanged (Sarah and Marley nearly started crying when Toby kissed them on the cheek as his good-bye) their friends started to leave, and Marley headed back to her dressing room.

Dereck was the last person to leave. "So… where are you-where are you staying?"

"They're putting us up in this hotel about two blocks away. It's not that bad… I have to share a room with Marley but I'm okay with that," Sarah explained. Dereck nodded and started to leave, but Sarah stopped him before he could. "How long have you been back?"

Dereck froze. "We just flew in today. We had a connecting flight from Africa to here. Our next flight is tomorrow morning, and I saw that you were going to be on this show because of Marley's Facebook page… so I figured it'd be nice to see you again."

"You could've called and told me you were coming. Or at least sent smoke signals."

Dereck chuckled. "Well, that would've ruined the surprise."

"Surprise? What surprise?"

"I'm moving back to St. Joseph."

Time seemed to freeze and Sarah momentarily forgot how to breathe. _Dereck. Back in America. Back in Michigan. Back in St. Joseph… Closer to me… _The thought made Sarah smile.

"And my dad pulled some strings, made a few calls, threatened to kick some asses… But, we managed to get our old house too. I'll be living next door to you again, Sarah. Just like the good ol' days!"

"When I get back you'll have to tell me about how much fun it was in Africa!" Sarah told him. "I haven't spoken to you in nearly three years! It'll be nice to catch up!"

Dereck nodded and before Sarah knew what he was doing, crossed the room and enveloped her in a hug. Sarah's breath hitched at first, but then she just sort of, melted, into his embrace. It felt right, natural even. It amazed her that after being apart for nearly three years it still felt this way. Sarah smiled and sighed happily, especially went she caught a whiff of his cologne. Like Pine trees after the rain. And for some reason, he smelled like a brand new book. Like… Dereck.

Sarah loved it.

All too soon, Dereck pulled away. And the way he looked at her (eyes slightly dilated, a smile on his lips and a twinkle in those hazel eyes that made her heart beat faster) it should've been illegal. "I'll be watching you from back home, texting you from my couch, and waiting for you to come home, my little song bird."

Sarah blushed. "Text me when you land in St. Joseph, I want to be sure that you're actually staying. Think you can handle that, my happy dreamer?"

It was his turn to blush. "Anything you say, Sarah." He cast one more glance at her as he left her dressing room. Sarah smiled dreamily. Her life couldn't get any better! She was competing on national TV for the job of a lifetime, her family and friends had come to see her on opening night, and now, her childhood love (_"Friend! Just a friend!"_ an annoying voice in Sarah's head shouted at her, but she didn't listen) was moving back to St. Joseph. Her life couldn't get any better than it was right now!

As she changed, humming _Tonight_ from _West Side Story_ as she did so, the girl spared no thought to the rose that now laid on the floor, or for her Angel of Music. All her thoughts revolved around memories associated with Dereck.

_Meanwhile…_

His mouth twisted downwards at the sight and he could practically taste the bile in his mouth. All because of _that boy_…

He remembered him. Yes, he was the boy who jumped into the river to rescue his beloved's scarf. Even back then, he never liked this Dereck Foreman, and now, he had another reason not to. Sarah was clearly overjoyed at seeing him again. Reminiscing, laughing, and teasing. It made him sick.

_What does she see in him?_ He wondered as he let the crystal disappear, he wanted to offer Sarah her privacy as she changed. He honestly couldn't figure out what it was. Lean shoulders, tall but otherwise scrawny frame, he probably weighed at least the same (If not ten pounds less) than her, and he could (and apparently was, from what he understood about the conversation) be beat up by Sarah or Marley. Maybe even Toby.

If he felt this boy was no threat (and he was certain that he wasn't!) then why did Sarah seem so happy to be around him? She smiled at nearly every damn thing he said. Even when he had said that his beloved had man-hands, she was smiling!

_No matter,_ he told himself. _You are her Angel of Music. You have power over her. Just not enough._ He chuckled darkly. _Not enough power… Yet._

_Meanwhile, with Dereck…_

_Stupid commercials!_ Dereck thought begrudgingly, watching the commercial for dishwasher detergent. _I mean, why do commercials even exist? It's not like they're beneficial or anything!_

"Oh, Fred, seeing that dishwasher reminds me." His mother—Katherine, or Kat—a woman in her mid-forties with blonde hair in _Shirley Temple-esque_ curls and bright blue eyes, turned to her husband. "When you head out to work tomorrow, I'm going to need you to pick up some dishwasher detergent. I gave our last bit to Mrs. Williams."

_Ok, so commercials have SOME benefits!_

"Now why would you go and do that?" Fred Foreman—a man in his early fifties with thinning brown hair, round hazel eyes and a dry sense of humor—asked his wife. "If you do that, then you're basically giving her the 'OK' to walk all over us! And to borrow our stuff whenever the Williams's feel like it!"

Kat rolled her eyes at her husband. "Oh Fred, what do I have to do to get you to act like a human being?"

"Oh, you see, the trick to that is to get a boat full of dead Al-Qaida members-" Dereck started, his signature joking smirk on his face.

"I'd stop right there if I were you boy," Fred warned his son. "Or else I'll vandalize your ass with my foot."

Dereck only smiled. "Whatever you say, boss!" _Note to self, avoid mentioning Al-Qaida around my dad for at least… two more weeks._

_Knock-Knock-Knock!_

"I'll get it!" Charlotte's voice shouted as she came down the stairs, soon followed by the sounds of a door opening and a loud groan. Followed by Jacob asking "What the hell are you doing here? The freaking sun is up!"

"Ha. Ha. Ha. You're so hilarious orphan boy," Charlotte spat. "What're you doing here, anyway?"

"We're here to watch Marley and Sarah on TV," Jacob told her in a matter-of-fact tone as he side-stepped her, soon followed by the rest of his friends. Charlotte scowled but said nothing on the subject.

"Have they gone yet, man?" Liam asked.

"Marley went a while ago… she did pretty good… sang that one song…um… _I Kissed A Girl_. Pretty good." Dereck said, distracted.

River smiled. "You're just waiting for Sarah to perform, aren't you?"

"Yeah… Yeah… Uh-huh…"

Wes smirked at his friend mischievously, deciding to take advantage of this situation. "Hey, Dereck, can I have all your G.I. Joe action figures?"

"Yeah… Yeah… Uh-huh…"

Everyone in the room snickered. Matt smiled thoughtfully and asked "Hey, buddy, tell me the truth: do you still have feelings for Sarah?"

"_WHAT?!_ NO! I don't have-What?! Where would you-? I don't have… feelings?! What! No, you're-you're crazy… No…" Dereck denied what his friend asked him, but judging by the way he was blushing and frantically avoiding their eyes, they all knew the truth.

"Real convincing man…" Liam winked not so discreetly at the scrawny teenager.

Thankfully, Dereck was saved from another embarrassing moment by Gerald Bottler reappearing on the TV. _"And welcome back to _The Music of The Night_! Now, you just watched Marley St. Cloud perform, and if you want to see her move onto the next round, you fans out there will have to vote—But not yet! Wait until after _all_ of our Christine's have performed!"_

"Does anyone else find that guy creepy? I mean, he smiles way too much!" Charlotte asked, leaning over the edge of the couch.

"Creepy men have never seemed to bother you before." Jacob smirked as Charlotte sent a glare his way.

"_Now, please welcome our next performer—Performing _Everytime We Touch_ by _Cascada_—it's St. Joseph, Michigan resident, Sarah Williams!"_ The live audience on the television and everyone in the Foreman's living room applauded. Dereck leaned forward in his seat and stared intently as the girl in question appeared on screen.

Now, at the live show, when Sarah first appeared to sing her first solo, he felt his heart stop. This time (when she appeared on screen wearing a pale green, knee-length dress with a black belt around the hips, black pups and her usual locket in place), he felt his heart stop _and_ he was having trouble breathing. Yet somehow, he didn't care. All he knew was what was on the screen, and that was Sarah. There were two attractive men in tight black clothing that appeared behind her as she reached the top of the stairs to the stage. Dereck felt a surge of protectiveness run through him at the sight of those two men. _What the hell are they doing with her? Why does she have those two with her?_

Ok, he might never admit this to anyone (his friends and Sarah especially!) but maybe there was _small_—incredibly small, like teensy tiny small—chance that he _might_ still have _some_ feelings for Sarah.

As a tiny little banner that read Sarah's name, the show's hotline for votes, and the words "DON'T VOTE UNTIL ALL OF OUR CHRISTINES HAVE PERFORMED! LINES STILL CLOSED." appeared on screen, the song started.

"_I still hear your voice when you sleep next to me__. __I still feel your touch in my dreams__. __Forgive me my weakness, but I don't know why__… __Without you it's hard to survive!__'Cause everytime we touch, I get this feeling__—__and everytime we kiss, I swear I could fly__! __Can't you feel my heart beat fast?__I want this to last__, __I need you by my side..."_

She was amazing… Just like she had been last week. No, she had been amazing last week, and this week she was spectacular!

"I think she's going to be on this show for another week, don't you, guys?" Wes asked. He was met by a chorus of agreements.

"_Cause everytime we touch, I feel the static__—__and everytime we kiss, I reach for the sky__—__can't you hear my heart beat so?__I can't let you go!__I want you in my life…"_ Now, Dereck knew that he wasn't exactly the smartest guy in the world (his dad often pointed that out when he came home with anything less than A+ on his report card, and also called him a smartass whenever he was being a little bit more mouthy than he should), but he could've sworn that the guys acting as Sarah's back up dancer were looking at her in a very… _'Loving'_ way. And he was pretty damn sure that they weren't acting.

Like they were being turned on just by listening to her voice.

Granted, he was a_ tad _turned on himself, and he could tell River, Jacob, Matt and Wes were too (ok, those last two didn't count. Matt was hornier than a twelve-year-old boy on puberty while watching old re-runs of _I Dream of Jeannie,_ and Wes was turned on by freaking _Hannah Montana_). But honestly, did they have to look at her like that? It probably didn't help Dereck's jealousy, seeing Sarah smiling sweetly and gently caressing one of the back-up dancer's faces as she sang.

"_Your arms are my castle, your heart is my sky__… __They wipe away tears that I cry__… __The good and the bad times, we've been through them all__—__you make me rise when I fall! 'Cause everytime we touch, I get this feeling__—__and everytime we kiss I swear I could fly__! __Can't you feel my heart beat fast?__I want this to last__, __I need you by my side…"_

Yep, it was definitely not helping his jealousy…

"Dereck? Dereck… Dereck!" Jacob shouted, snapping his fingers in front of his friend's face, thus bringing him back to reality. "Are you ok, man?"

"Y-Yeah, why do you ask?"

"Because you're kind of strangling that pillow there."

Dereck glanced down in surprise and realized that at some point while watching Sarah perform (and her back-up dancers practically un-dress her with their eyes) he must have grabbed a nearby pillow and started to squeeze it mercilessly in his anger.

"I… I hadn't noticed…" Dereck said lamely._ "Smooth one, Foreman. Very smooth…"_ Dereck was practically kicking himself in the butt for that one.

"_'Cause everytime we touch, I feel the static__—__and everytime we kiss, I reach for the sky__—__can't you hear my heart beat so?__I can't let you go!__I want you in my life…"_

The song ended, and even though Sarah was wrapped in the arms of her back-up dancers, he still found that her performance was the best part of the entire show.

"Yep, she's definitely staying on the show for another week, man." Liam said.

"Hey, did anyone else notice that those two guys were giving Sarah bedroom eyes while she sang?" Charlotte asked.

To Dereck, the sudden urge to face palm was terrifying hard to resist.

_Meanwhile…_

True, his future queen had done spectacularly, but he still frowned in concern. "This could pose a problem." He had forgotten this when he had granted her wish, but now, it all came back to haunt him. "How could I have been so daft?"

Sarah had wished to sing as beautifully as the _Fae_. And the Fae song was often compared to the Siren's song in beauty. More often than most, the Fae song often surpassed even the Siren songs. But, that was the drawback of this situation. Sarah was only a seventeen-year-old _human_, and he had only taught her how to _sing_.

He had neglected to teach her how to properly use her newfound abilities. And now, she was to be facing the repercussions. For, without the proper training, his beloved would soon be forced upon by nearly every male of her species. Why? The Fae often used their song to seduce their mates. One left untrained, could attract unwanted attention very easily.

He could practically taste the bile in his mouth already.

_Calm yourself… You are her _Angel of Music_… She will listen, she will learn, and then all shall be well..._

He conjured up a crystal and saw that she was conversing with the judges (the blonde woman giving her a fair share of criticism that his beloved took with an understanding smile) and the back-up dancers were looking at her in a way that made him wish that he could send those two to the Bog of Eternal Stench that instant.

_The next week, with Sarah…_

She was rocking back and forth on her feet. She wasn't exactly nervous, but she knew the fluttering in her stomach wasn't due to excitement either. Her outfit (A pale green, spaghetti-strapped, knee-length sundress, tan colored shoes, with her hair curled and pinned tightly against her head, and her ever present locket, still against her chest) wasn't as bad as the last two had been. It wasn't the song, for she knew it by heart. And she had received encouraging texts from her friends (Wes and Jacob's texts had made her laugh so hard she had momentarily forgot her nerves), her family (Toby was lucky that his sister knew how to speak toddler, otherwise she would've thought a drunk, German man had sent the text), and multiple Facebook messages, phone calls, and texts from Dereck.

Sarah smiled at the thought. It was great having Dereck back in America, back in Michigan. It sucked that she was stuck in New York for an undetermined amount of time. But, if she'd made do with Skype calls and Facebook messages before, she could do it again.

_Damn it! Why can't Gerald just get through the announcements quicker!_ Sarah thought begrudgingly, hearing the host conversing with the audience and Andrew. _Can we just get this over with? My Angel is-_

Once again, that metaphorical train hit Sarah, again. Her _Angel of Music_! He had said that he saw her performance last week, and told her that while she had done well, she hadn't mastered the 'technique' of singing. Whatever that meant.

He had also said that he would be watching her performance again. _Closely._ He had told her. _Closely, my prized pupil. So do make this one memorable._

The thought made her shiver.

"And now—Singing the classic song _Somewhere_ from _West Side Story_—could she be your _Christine_? It's Sarah Williams!" Gerald announced excitedly. Sarah smiled briefly before walking up the stairs that led from the back-stage to the front. As a light piano key intro began, Sarah felt a surge of anxiousness and confidence hit her stomach. _Dear God… This should be fun…_ She thought anxiously as she made her way down the steps, she caught the eye of Keith Osburne. Last week he had personally come to congratulate her on her spectacular performance, bringing her a bouquet of lilies with him. It wasn't a pleasant memory to Sarah. Even so, when he smiled encouragingly at her, she felt a surge of relief. It felt nice to know that someone on the Judge's Panel who was rooting for her.

"_There is a place for us… Somewhere, a place for us. Time together with time to spare, Time to learn—Time to care! Somehow! Somewhere! We'll find a new way of living… We'll find a way of forgiving… Somewhere…"_

This week's performance, Sarah could tell, would not be as impressive as the one she had given last week. She had already missed at least two notes and had messed up the first set of lyrics. If her Angel wasn't disappointed in her before, he sure as hell was now.

But even so, Sarah decided to at least keep going. If she was going to survive performing eight shows a week on Broadway, then she was going to have to learn to keep going no matter how much she messed up.

"_There's a place for us—A time and a place for us! Hold my hand and we're halfway there! Hold my hand and I'll take you there! Somehow!… Someday!… Somewhere!"_

Even through the applause of the audience and the praise of Gerald, she could practically hear her Angel's sarcastic clapping.

Sarah was not looking forward to the next five minutes of her life.

_Later, in Sarah's dressing room…_

By some miracle (mainly her large number of at-home-audience supporters), Sarah had received a fair share of votes and was spared from elimination. True, she wasn't first or second in the polls right now (she was third actually), but she was still on the show. Tara Bethans—the girl who had worn orange and was the oldest cast member at twenty-nine—was not so lucky however. Even though her room was at the other end of the hallway, Sarah could still hear her sobbing. She was considering whether or not walking down to the woman's room and attempting to comfort her was a good idea, seeing as how she didn't know the woman very well. Sarah resolved to do so after she changed.

And dealt with a certain… _visitor_…

"_Welcome back, Sarah… Welcome back…"_ The voice echoed through her room.

_Speak of the devil, er, Angel… How does that work again?_ Sarah's gaze ran over the room. She was always left to wonder how her Angel was able to sound so close to her yet so far away at the same time… Like he was in the same room with her, but at the same time practically halfway across the country. A literal echo, if you will.

"_Lost in thought, Sarah?"_ The teasing voice brought her back to her senses. She shook her head. "No… Not entirely… Just sort of wondering, I guess."

"_About what, per se?"_

"How in the hell you are able to do this?"

"_Language, Sarah."_ Her Angel scolded lightly. _"And do what?"_

"How you're able to sound so close yet… so-so far! I just don't get you sometimes. You're practically an echo to me, yet somehow you're an echo only in this room! Or any room I'm in, for that matter."

She could practically hear the smug smirk on his face when he asked _"Would you like me to be closer to you, Sarah?"_

She rolled her eyes and spotted it. Another red rose with a black ribbon tied around the stem. This rose—while beautiful—was looking a little… wilted. She crossed the room and picked it up gently. She compared it to the last three roses she had gotten from him. They had been of long, thorn-less stems, and the petals of the rose were (for lack of a better word) perfect. The red hue captured the attention, the scent was lovely but not overbearing to the point that you could taste it, and the softness of the petals was sublime. Even the little black ribbon was perfect, softer than the finest silk.

This one was... less impressive. The stem was short and covered in thorns, the ribbon's thread was showing at one haggardly clipped end, the petals were soft but felt like dead leaves at the end and the color was a sickly blackish-blue mixed with the red.

_He's good at getting his message across,_ Sarah thought._ I'll give him that…_

"_I must admit Sarah…"_ Her Angel began, obviously noting that she had received his meaning. _"I was rather disappointed in you these last couple of weeks. One week you have too much passion behind your beautiful eyes, and the next hardly any… Have you anyway to explain yourself?"_

She didn't have one. To be completely honest she didn't have an excuse. She had too much passion last week, and now she was lack-luster. There was no excuse.

But, the perks of being friends with someone like Jacob was that you learned lessons you'd never learn if you had perfect goody-goody, Catholic school friends. One of those lessons was that as long as you don't get caught, or have a damn good lie to get yourself out of it, everything was legal. That's why his busted up old Chevy pick-up truck was always filled to the dashboard with stolen bags of pretzels.

So, Sarah did what her pride (and that damn little devil on her shoulder that often used Jacob's voice) compelled her to do. Came up with a damn good lie.

"Even the biggest of stars have off-days… Look at Sierra Boggess, she's doing two Broadway productions at the same time… I'm sure she has some off days." Sarah shrugged.

"_I doubt your faulty performances have been the results of just a few 'off days,' as you have so blatantly put it!"_

"Alright fine! So I've had a couple of off weeks, nothing I can't get over!"

"_The problem lies not with you 'getting over it', but with the delivery of your performance…"_ The baritone echo was greeted by silence and Sarah's face angrily pouting in the mirror. _"If you don't pull it together, Sarah, I can almost guarantee you won't last much longer on this… 'Little' show…"_

Sarah scoffed. "And _you_ would know this how, exactly?"

He didn't seem to hear her. _"What I don't seem to get is how the first week you were on top of everything… If I remember correctly, you had the most votes to stay on the show. Yet, these past few weeks, you seem to have been a bit distracted…"_

Her pride has gotten her into more than one bad situation before, but she couldn't help that. So, when he spoke, she just couldn't hold back the cry of: "I am _not _distracted! I think I would know if I was!"

As if the universe loved pulling some sick, twisted joke on her, she heard her phone buzz next to her. Even though she couldn't see him to confirm it, she knew her Angel was watching her, daring her to pick it up. Frankly, she was contemplating whether or not to do so. On one hand, if she picked it up, no doubt her Angel would give her hell. On the other, what if it was something important? Like Irene or Dad or one of her friends calling to tell her something important, like they won the lottery or a bomb just went off inside her bedroom or something?

Like many decision in life, this one had its fair share of pros and cons.

Eventually, however, the pros outweighed the cons and Sarah picked up her phone. She smiled lightly and let out a light laugh. It was only a text from Dereck. A picture actually, something he had found on Facebook. An orange Tabby Cat, a smiling one, with a dark brown towel draped over its head with only its nose and mouth is showing, and on the top of the picture, written in big block letters was 'SOMETHING, SOMETHING' and on the bottom the words 'DARKSIDE' were written.

_Figures, HE would share something like that._ Sarah shook her head fondly, smiling as she pictured Dereck burst out laughing as he saw this picture for the first time. _He obsesses over Stars Wars so much, one might think he was actually there when it was being made._

"_Well, well, well… what have we here?"_ His voice reminded her that he was still watching.

"Oh, nothing."

"_Nothing? Nothing? Nothing, _tra-la-la_?!"_

Sarah dropped her phone in an instant (thankfully, it landed on the desk which was barely a foot below her hand) as her blood ran cold and her eyes widened. Vaguely she remembered a dream she had had a long time ago. One with knights, and puzzles, and dwarves, and goblins, and the Goblin King.

"W-What did you just say?" Sarah's voice came out quieter than she would've liked.

"_So… _THIS_ is why you have been slipping! You're stuck up on this-this half-witted, scrawny, pathetic little boy!"_

Sarah's mouth formed a perfect little 'O' as she narrowed her eyes at the mirror (as though her 'Angel' was behind it) and cried "I am not! And Dereck is _not_ pathetic!"

"_Ah, so you admit it's_ him_…"_ If she didn't know better, she would say that her Angel was jealous. But why would her Angel be jealous? Sarah knew that her Angel was here to help her, like a guide.

Dereck is… Dereck is _special_. In Sarah's mind, no one could compare to Dereck.

She spun around, arms crossed, and an angry scowl on her face. "So what if he is! He's my friend! And since I can't spend time with him in _person_, like I _want_ to, this is the-"

That's when the room started to shake.

Not violently or anything, just enough for Sarah to notice and for her to get nervous enough to grip the edge of her dresser as if it were her life. As she felt the room shake all the way to her bones, she noticed in the mirror a pair of eyes. At least, she thought they were. Due to inhuman way that they were glowing, she doubted they _were _human at all. She gasped in horror as she felt her heart rate increase.

As soon as it started, though, it stopped just as quick.

The only sounds that penetrated the eerie silence of Sarah's dressing room was Sarah herself. Trying to calm her rapidly beating heart by taking deep breaths. It worked, but only to a degree. She could feel her Angel (_or whatever the hell he is…_) watching her, that's where the true anxiety came from.

"_We are going to pick up our lessons more routinely now, I will not be the one who sees you eliminated from this little game just because you were distracted from your true calling."_ The baritone voice echoed throughout the room, it had a sad gentleness to it. As if it might regret the shaking of the room, no matter how little it was. _"Despite what you think, Sarah, I do care about whether or not you win this show."_

Sarah turned around to face her angel and—surprise, surprise—found that he wasn't there. Like always. "Well, why do you care, huh? What makes me so special? Why me—Out of the _millions_ of people in the world who are less fortunate than I—_why me_?"

You would need a chainsaw to cut the silence that penetrated the dressing room.

After what seemed like an eternity, Sarah had finally decided that her Angel had left her for the day and decided to change back into her regular clothes and go comfort that Tara girl. That's when the voice rang out for the last time that day:

"Because you've turned my world, Sarah-mine."

As an involuntary shiver crawled slowly up her spine, Sarah was left to wonder why that reminded her so much of a dream she once had…

_The next week…_

"_Once again, precious."_

Sarah bit her tongue to hold back the groan of annoyance that was fighting, oh so hard, to break free. She respected her Angel of Music and his teaching, but his lessons were getting to be very (for lack of a better word) _tedious._

Really, how many times could one the sing the first two verses of Paula Abdul's _Cold Hearted_ and _NOT_ want to stab some part of their body.

Sarah loved the song well enough, but after singing only the first half or so for the past_ hour and a half_, she was about ready to either break something, someone, or possibly both. Honestly, she was past the point of caring. Nonetheless, she began to sing the first verse again.

"_He's a cold-hearted snake! Look into his eyes—Oh-oh-oh—He's been tellin' lies. He's a lover boy at play, He don't play by rules—Oh-oh-oh—Girl don't play the fool, now!"_

This part, she had down pat. She knew it like the back of her hand, forward and backwards. It was just the next verse that she apparently had trouble with.

"_You're the one givin' up the love, anyti-"_ And, of course, she had 'messed' up. Once again.

"_Just stop, Sarah. Stop!"_

Sarah huffed. _Here we go again…_

"_Remember what I said about the emotion, the passion behind your eyes."_ Her Angel reprimanded her. _"That is what truly drives your song. If you have too much passion, you will find yourself at the center of unwanted attention. If you have too little however, your song will fall flat before it can even take flight."_

Irritation, not curiosity, is what drove Sarah to ask her next question. "Well how can you even see my eyes? You're not even in the room with me!"

Her Angel chuckled. _"I don't have to be in the room with you, darling, to see your beautiful eyes. Or the passion behind them…"_

She knew her Angel meant well, but that just made him sound like a friendly stalker. The worst possible kind in Sarah's opinion. She exhaled slowly. "So, how do I do that exactly?"

She heard a sigh. _"All you have to do, Sarah, is let yourself be lost to the song. Completely. As long as you mean every word, you will have the perfect amount of power behind your eyes. Enough to make anyone in the audience fall for you, but not enough for them to lust after you."_

"I doubt that'll happen."

"_Tell me, Sarah, that judge who came to see you a while ago—what was his name, Osburne?—did you not find his intentions for visiting rather odd?"_

In all truth, Sarah did find it pretty odd. Thinking back on the memory, Sarah was able to realize just why that little interaction had been more than uncomfortable for her. Keith was so relaxed, but he kept blushing. He was friendly, but he kept that gigantic smile on his face (not as big as the one Gerald always sported, but big nonetheless). When Keith and Sarah were talking his eyes would always drift downwards until he was either staring at her chest or, possibly (but less likely), her stomach.

The naïve, innocent part of her liked to believe it was her stomach, even if she knew the truth.

"_From the top, Sarah."_

Nodding, Sarah searched her memory for the tune of the song, eventually finding it. Sarah let herself imagine the introduction before she began to sing again.

"_He's a cold-hearted snake! Look into his eyes—Oh-oh-oh—He's been tellin' lies. He's a lover boy at play, he don't play by rules—Oh-oh-oh—Girl don't play the fool, now!"_

About an hour later, with Dereck…

"_You're the one givin' up the love, anytime he needs it! But you turn your back and then he's off and runnin' with the crowd. You're the one to sacrifice, anything to please him  
Do you really think he thinks about you when he's out."_

As always, Sarah was fantastic in his opinion. He liked the beat, he liked the lyrics, and he was guilty of admitting to the fact that Paula Abdul was something along the lines of a guilty pleasure of his. Sarah's outfit choice—as always—made it hard for him to think.

A skin-tight, pale green dress that clung to her curves until it reached her hips and then flared out to her knees, a tight black leather jacket, fish-net stockings, and black ankle boots.

Dereck was very thankful for the fact that he wasn't wearing tight pants at that moment.

"_He's a cold-hearted snake! Look into his eyes—Oh-oh-oh—He's been tellin' lies. He's a lover boy at play, He don't play by rules—Oh-oh-oh—Girl don't play the fool, now!"_

Dereck bit the inside of his cheek and leaned back into his seat, bringing the bag of pretzels (one of the ones he stole from Jacob's truck), into his lap. _Oh boy… Naughty thoughts are a-comin' on…_

But before he could even entertain those thoughts about his oldest friend, he forced them down by thinking of the most boring thing he could. A Chemistry Mid-Term study session.

It worked for about a solid… two seconds, before he heard Sarah singing again. Then the previous thoughts would rear there not-so-ugly heads.

Basically, he was fighting an uphill battle, and losing.

"_It was only late last night, He was out there sneakin'… Then he called you up to check that you were waiting by the phone. All the world's a candy store, He's been trick or treatin'! When it comes to true love girl with him there's no one home! He's a cold-hearted snake! Look into his eyes—Oh-oh-oh—He's been tellin' lies. He's a lover boy at play, He don't play by rules—Oh-oh-oh—Girl don't play the fool, now!"_

It was definitely not helping the fact that the dress Sarah was wearing made his imagination go wild, especially whenever she struck out one of her hips in a suggestive manner in time to the song, or the face she made when she did so.

Good God, _that face_!

One minute, it would be passive and bored, the next it would be like she was trying to tell someone off in an irritated way. Then there were some parts of the song where she would wear a mischievous smirk and Dereck would be able to see a little glint in her eyes.

He didn't even notice the fact that she had back-up dancers (who were a mix between looking angry and impassive all at once), because all he could focus on was Sarah.

It was getting very hard to keep his interest hidden. In more ways than one.

"_You could find somebody better girl. He can only make you cry. You deserve somebody better, girl. He's c-cold as ice! As cold as ice, He's cold as ice, He's cold as ice—Stay away from him girl! C-c-c-cold hearted uh, ah, ah! C-c-c-cold hearted sssnake! C-c-c-cold hearted uh, ah, ah! C-c-c-cold hearted sssnake! He's a cold-hearted snake! Look into his eyes—Oh-oh-oh—He's been tellin' lies. He's a lover boy at play, He don't play by rules—Oh-oh-oh—Girl don't play the fool, now!"_

"Hey, Dereck…" Charlotte leaned over to her brother's spot on the couch, smirking like the demon she was. "You think those guys have massive boners or something cause of the way Sarah's dancing? I don't think so, but who knows better how those things work than a man himself… but since dad's not here, I'll ask you!"

Well, shit, he should've guessed his sister would notice something odd about the way he was sitting. She'd probably given about ten guys a boner at once.

Thank the Lord neither one of their parents were home. Or his friends for that matter.

"I doubt that they're turned on by this. They have to be pretty professional to be on this show, so I bet they've trained themselves to not be turned on by stuff like this…" How the hell did he keep his voice so steady?

Charlotte regarded him for a minute before saying "So, I don't get it. Are you or are you not turned on by this? I mean, you've known Sarah since you guys were in grade school, and I know you still have some feelings for her!"

This time, his voice did crack. "What?! No I don't! Why does-why does everyone keep saying that?! I don't! Sarah and I are just friends!"

"With benefits, right?"

He grabbed a pillow that separated him and his sister on the couch, brought it to his face so quickly he knocked over his bag of pretzels, and then screamed into it.

Charlotte scoffed and reached down to grab the bag of pretzels "I'm just teasing you, doofus. Take a pill."

"_Look into his eyes! Oh-ah—He's been tellin' lies! Oh-ah—He don't play by rules! Oh-ah—Girl don't play the fool, now! Cold-hearted snake! Look into his eyes! Oh~oh~oh—He's a cold-hearted snake!"_

Dereck brought the pillow down from his face just in time to see Sarah flash the camera a knowing smile/smirk. She looked amazing when she did that. _Stop it Dereck! This is Sarah we're talking about here!_ He mentally scolded himself. _Smart, hilarious, independent, resourceful, cunning, beautiful Sarah you're talking about here. You've known her all your life, you are not allowed to have these type of feelings for her. She, probably has someone in New York, anyway._

"Hey, baby brother?" Charlotte asked through a mouthful of chips.

"Hmm?"

"Next time you try to hide your, um, 'manhood' try using a pillow. It works better."

The applause Sarah was getting, the judges praising her, and Charlotte's laughter were the noises that filled the room as Dereck's face slowly became a cherry red tomato.

_The next week, with Sarah…_

Sarah smoothed out her dress. She was getting used to the outfits she'd have to wear. This time, it was a pale green, sparkly number that hugged her subtle curves and went down to about her thighs in length, knee high black boots, her usual locket and a black bracelet on her right arm.

All in all, she didn't really mind this outfit as much as she would've a few weeks ago.

Barry (her Jamaican-born back up dancer with long black hair pulled into a ponytail) tapped her on the shoulder. "Break a leg out there, mon."

She smiled encouragingly at him and Todd (her back up dancer with short, amber hair). "Thanks! Hey, you two be careful out there. I remember you guys going over choreography, and I don't want you guys getting whiplash with all those head whips, ok?"

They both laughed a little and nodded, telling her that they'd be careful but could make no promises.

That was the best she could hope for, so Sarah just returned to her thoughts and listening to Marley (who was on stage at that very moment putting Britney Spears to shame, not that it was hard).

The past couple of weeks since her Angel had begun to increase the number of lessons and the difficulty level, she had been having odd dreams.

They weren't nightmares, but they weren't pleasant dreams either.

The funny thing was, they were all generally revolving around the same thing. There would be the remains of a shattered ballroom, she would be wearing the biggest and whitest dress she'd ever seen, and there would be music playing.

The whole thing was like a big déjà vu.

And, there was always someone there. A man, at least Sarah thought he was a man. He was built like one, but he had such long, blonde hair, that it made her doubt that idea very much. The man would be wearing a sequined blue jacket and his hands would be covered by black leather gloves, inside those gloved hands danced a crystal ball.

His back was always to her.

She tried approaching him (that's where the dream really started getting creepy,) as she neared him she would hear faint, but still prominent, screams. Screams of terrified people in pain. Then, just as she was about to tap the man (or possibly woman) on his shoulder, a bright flash of light would appear and Sarah would find herself in her dark apartment room. Marley snoring lightly next to her.

It bugged her. Why? Sarah didn't know. She just knew that when she woke up she felt angry for some dumb reason.

But that was good, she would need a little bit of anger for the song she was going to sing this week.

"_Hit me baby one more time!"_ Sarah heard Marley sing.

"Get ready boys." Sarah smirked at her two back up dancers.

Soon enough, she was being introduced by Gerald and he was telling everyone, watching or listening, that she would be singing one of her favorite songs by Kelly Clarkson, _Since You've Been Gone_.

Her, Barry and Todd climbed up the back staircase and mounted the one connected to the stage as the rock guitar introduction filled the area.

"_Here's the thing we started off friends, it was cool but it was all pretend. Yeah, yeah… Since you've been gone. You dedicated you took the time, wasn't long till I called you mine. Yeah, yeah… Since you've been gone."_

As Barry and Todd crouched down and watched Sarah for their next cue, she made her way down the stairs. She glanced at the judges and audience members and saw that they were smiling and nodding their heads along in time to the music.

At the right moment in the song, Sarah allowed herself to smirk. She had a feeling, she was going to be a hit. As her back-up dancers followed her down the steps, starting to spice up their choreography, she moved towards the judges' stand. Sometimes looking at the judges, sometimes looking at the camera.

After that, things started getting good.

"_And all you'd ever hear me say: 'Is how I pictured me with you!' That's all you'd ever hear me say… But since you've been gone—I can breathe for the first time! I'm so movin' on, yeah-yeah! Thanks to you now I get what I want… Since you've been gone"_

Giving Todd a light shove, Sarah strutted her way over to the other side of the stage. Sometimes singing to the audience, sometimes to the camera.

Then, she walked over to the middle of the stage and ran into Barry. Remembering what came next, Sarah prayed to God that he wouldn't get whip-lash as he jerked his head and hips in time to her jerking her head and hips. Why did they do this routine again?

"_How can I put it? You put me on. I even fell for that stupid love song! Yeah, yeah… Since you've been gone. How come I'd never hear you say? 'I just wanna be with you!' I guess you never felt that way…"_

As the drums and guitars started to pick up, Sarah quickly dashed over to the stairs before kind of kneeling down and pointing at some far off point into the audience she couldn't see.

"_You had your chance and you blew it! Out of sight, out of mind! Shut your mouth I just can't take it! Again and again and again and again!"_

That was by far her favorite of the song and choreography. She got to run her hands through her hair and cover her ears in anger, as if blocking out the annoying words of an ex-lover. It made her feel kind of powerful. Knowing that she had enough power over someone to be able to do that.

"_Since you've been gone—I can breathe for the first time! I'm so movin' on, yeah-yeah! Thanks to you! Now I get—you should know—that I get, I get what I want… Since you've been gone!"_

With one last head-whip, the three people currently on stage finished.

Some of the audience was standing, some weren't. All were clapping, most shouting praises, some whistling. The judges applauded.

Sarah smiled. She did it. She knew for a fact that she wasn't going home this week. And if she could keep it up, she wouldn't be going home anytime soon. She chuckled a little bit before Gerald called her over to the stand before the judges.

_I'm back, baby!_


End file.
